FALLS CHURCH, Va. (AP) – Amber Heard told jurors on Thursday that a campaign of intimidation against her by ex-husband Johnny Depp has humiliated her and scared her for her life through multiple death threats, saying she just wants “Johnny to leave me alone.”
Heard would be the last witness in the six-week libel trial that Depp had brought against his ex-wife. With cameras in court, millions of people watched the trial and interest seemed to be gaining momentum over the weeks with both Depp and Heard testifying about the ugly details of their relationship.
Online and in the courthouse, Depp’s fans have overwhelmingly dominated the story, with groupies queuing at night to grab one of the few seats in the courtroom and wave at Depp as he walks in and out. Heard is booed by onlookers in the street as she enters and exits the courthouse.
“The harassment and the humiliation, the campaign against me that reverberates every day on social media, and now in front of showroom cameras — every day I have to relive the trauma,” Heard said as she fought back tears. “Maybe it’s easy to forget I’m human.”
Depp is suing Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court over a December 2018 op-ed she wrote in The Washington Post describing herself as “a public figure who represents domestic violence.” His lawyers say he was defamed by the article, although his name was never mentioned.
Heard said she hopes the lawsuit will allow her to regain her voice, saying she had the “right as an American” to publish an article detailing her experiences and how they relate to the national debate on domestic violence.
“Johnny has had enough of my voice,” she said. “I have the right to tell my story.”
Depp has denied ever hitting Heard, saying she was the abuser in the relationship. Heard has testified about more than a dozen individual cases of physical abuse she claims suffered at the hands of Depp.
The final witness Thursday morning for Depp’s side was a hand surgeon, Richard Gilbert, who said he believes the injury to Depp’s middle finger could have occurred as Depp describes it.
The tip of the finger was cut off during an argument the couple had in Australia. Depp says it happened when Heard threw a large vodka bottle at him. Heard says Depp did it to himself in a drug-fuelled rage one night when he also sexually assaulted her with a bottle of liquor.
